This invention relates generally to removable camper shells or tops for use with pickup trucks, and is more particularly concerned with camper shells for pickup trucks in which a lumber rack is installed.
The popularity of camper tops for pickup trucks is well known. They are used to convert the bed of the pickup truck into a sizable enclosed space. With a camper top the pickup truck may be used as a recreational vehicle for camping or may be used simply as an enclosed truck for protecting a load from the elements.
The camper top for a pickup has the advantage that it may be removed so that the truck serves a dual purpose. Without the top the truck may be used as an open-bed pickup. With the top the truck is converted into an enclosed camper. Although one of the advantages of a camper top for a pickup is that when desired the pickup may still be used as an open-bed vehicle, the construction of known camper tops tends to thwart this advantage because camper tops tend to be heavy and awkward and thus not easy to install or remove. Thus, the owners of camper tops are often discouraged from using them or from removing them once installed except in the most urgent need. Various camper top constructions have been devised in an attempt to circumvent this disadvantage. U.S. Pat. No. 4,815,786 to McRay, for example, discloses a collapsible camper top with telescoping metal side walls that collapses into a stored configuration in the bed of the pickup permitting the pickup bed to be used while the collapsed camper top is stored there. Another hard-shell camper top construction attempting to ease the installation process is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,002,329 to Rafi-Zadeh. In further attempts to circumvent the above-noted disadvantage, camper tops have been devised that are formed of a lighter-weight fabric or plastic covering that is installed over a removable or collapsible frame mounted on the pickup body. An example of this type of camper top is found in U.S. Pat. No. 4,813,734 to Hoover. U.S. Pat. No. 4,088,363 to Palmer discloses yet another attempt to make it easy to set up and break down a camper top for a pickup. In the Palmer patent a frame with flexible fabric or fabric-like covering collapses into the bed of the pickup and unfolds to form an enclosed camper or tent-like structure that partially rests on the ground behind the pickup. This form of solution of course can only be deployed when the pickup is stationary.
The problems of camper tops for pickups are heightened when the pickup carries a lumber rack. Pickups used in certain occupations, typically in the construction industry, are often outfitted with a lumber rack, which is a framework set up on the bed of the vehicle to carry oversized and awkward loads such as lumber or other construction materials. When equipped with a lumber rack, the vehicle also commonly includes a tool box shaped to fit in the bed and extending crosswise the full width of the bed. Thus, when it is desired to install the camper top, it is necessary first to remove the lumber rack and tool box, which is yet another operation that must he completed in the process of converting between an open-bed and enclosed truck. The lumber rack and tool box thus provide a further practical deterrent to full use and enjoyment of the traditional pickup truck camper top.